Freedom For What?

We've been talking about the Constitution and the freedom it gives us as citizens.

But how free are we? What does freedom mean? Does it mean we can do anything that we want? I think we will agree that the answer is no. Freedom of speech for example, does mean that we can go into a crowded theater and yell "Fire!" And freedom certainly doesn't mean that we can steal from people or assault them without fear of being arrested, tried, and perhaps thrown into jail. As somebody once said, "Your freedom to swing your fist ends just beyond the tip of my nose. "

So what does freedom mean in the sense of the Constitution? It means, I believe that we are free to live according to the laws of God, free to worship as we choose, to speak and write the truth as we see it, to choose our life's work, and to travel where we want to go - and to grant the same rights to others.

The Constitution does not give us unlimited rights to act without regard to other people. But it does guarantee us the right to live as free men in a society whose citizens are equal in the eyes of the law.